It had been six years since I’d ridden a Chinese built bike, so when I was asked to test the new CFMoto 650MT I was not expecting much. However, from the moment I picked up the bike from Graeme Morris Motorcycles, I could tell this was a much better bike altogether.

2017 CFMoto 650MT

The first thing you notice is the sharp modern styling – the bike was actually designed by Kiska Design, who are responsible for KTM styling. The build quality also looks pretty good, with neat welds on the steel tubular frame and a quality finish on the body panels, but obviously time will be the critic.

You also get super bright LED lights and indicators, an adjustable wind shield and a handy USB charging port, which would be handy for running a GPS on a bike like this. The MT also comes standard with ABS and surprisingly braided brake lines.

The suspension offers plenty of travel too, with 140mm at the front and although the front is only adjustable for compression, the rear can be adjusted for preload and rebound and has 145mm of travel. All this travel is handy for our crap Aussie roads, but does result in having a tall 840mm seat height, but a lower optional 820mm one is on offer.

Sitting on the bike the ride position is great for my 180cm dimensions and the seat feels really comfy too. The dash is fairly basic, but has a handy gear indicator, clock and fuel gauge and trip meter. The dash is easy to read, but for some reason the speedo is small, smaller in fact than the gear indicator.

The speedo reading on the 650MT is smaller than the gear indicator, which streams a strange choice

My only other small gripe is it’s really hard to use the function buttons on the move with gloves on, or to adjust the wind shield on the move. You have two modes to choose from, Sport and Economy, but to be honest I struggled to tell the difference between them, so just left it in Sport.

Pressing the start button I was greeted to the quiet burble from the low slung two into one muffler and the customiser in me couldn’t help thinking that a nice aftermarket exhaust system would make this engine roar. In saying that, the noise police would have no complaints in stock form.

Selecting first gear I head off for some country roads to put the MT through its paces. As soon as I move I can tell instantly that I like the bike, it just feels well balanced, the clutch is light and the gearbox is slick, even with only 40km on the clock. There is quite a long throw movement between the gears on the lever, but you get used to it in minutes.

2017 CFMoto 650MT – Optional panniers

My MT is fitted with quality Shad panniers. The panniers are lockable and easy removable, you just lift the handle then lift the catch and they are off. I chose to keep them on as it was freezing in the morning but getting warmer, so I’d be removing a few layers, plus I had a load of camera gear to carry and they are certainly handy for that.

I love the engine on the MT, it’s really quite torquey for a 650, and moving through traffic is a breeze, especially leaving cars behind at the lights. The Bosch fuel injection system does a good job of feeding the twin 38mm throttle-bodies and results in smooth throttle acceleration.

Minimal vibrations, good rear vision and a strong engine ensure the 650MT is happy on the highway

On the freeway the bike is really happy, the mirrors offer good safe vision and the engine vibrations are minimal, the ride position is perfect for me and the seat is spot on, with a small scalloped hump behind my backside, which keeps me from sliding back. I could see myself being capable of doing some massive kilometres on the MT and relatively pain free thanks to the great ergonomics.

The MT is marketed as an adventure tourer, but with 17in mag alloy rims I’d say it was more focused on the touring side, although I did take it on some light gravel roads and it was fine, but with Adreno Sport road tyres, anything too off road my result in some unwanted body repairs or dented rims.

The 650MT is definitely more sport-touring orientated than adventure-touring

The roads that the MT does shine on are our typical rutted, bumpy pothole ridden country ones; the long travel suspension loves these. I was thinking that the bike would be too softly sprung, making it wallow in the corners, but nothing could be further from the truth. The MT handles really well, which was the biggest surprise for me.

I love tight twisty roads and the MT shines here, the MT is not overly light at 213kg, but feels nowhere near that and flicks from side to side with minimal rider input and fells well planted and stable, even when encountering some nasty raised tarmac sections mid corner the MT powers through.

There’s excitement to be had on the 650MT despite being a LAMS compliant 650

The CFMoto’s engine has just enough grunt to make riding exciting, with 62Nm available at 7000rpm and driving out of corners you can pin the throttle without fear of high-siding, making use of every one of those 55 horses. In fact, the power is there from tick over and it’s not one of those engines that you really need to flog to get the most out of it.

In saying that, at 6000rpm the power really come into the meaty part of the rev-range and this is where the fun is at. It’s even possible to get a wheelie out of the mid-range parallel-twin, with the help of a few revs and a bit of clutch action.

Spanish J. Juan brakes feature braided lines

Another positive on this budget bike are the brakes, you get two 300mm steel discs with twin-piston calipers, the brakes are made by Spanish J.Juan, which to be honest I’ve never heard of, but they work really well, they offer good power and feel at the lever, plus are fitted with a Continental ABS system. I grabbed a handful of brake on a gravel road and the ABS did what it was supposed to do so I ticked it off the list as tested.

After doing a day ride with my mate Graham on his Fireblade, I know who was fresher at the end and I was happy to not have the stiff neck. I think that this type adventure/touring style of bikes are getting more popular, especially with the riding conditions we are faced with in Australia and our heavily policed roads, you can have some fun on a bike like this without breaking the speed limits too much and feel a lot more relaxed doing it.

Pommie and the 2017 CFMoto 650MT

There is a fair bit of competition for a bike like this, with the main contenders being the Suzuki V-Strom 650 and the Kawasaki Versys 650, which the CFMoto engine is a good copy of, but these Japanese bike are around $3000 more expensive. I guess the main challenge for CFMoto dealers will be to get people to test ride these bikes and see how good they really are for such a budget price.

2017 CFMoto 650MT

TECH TALK: 2017 CFMOTO 650MT

The CFMoto MT engine is basically a copy of the Kawasaki’s own 650cc parallel-twin, eight-valve engine, from their ER6 bike. This motor has been painstakingly copied even down to the same engine mount positions, which CFMoto seem quite happy to replicate down to amazing similarities.

649.3cc parallel twin, with a 180-degree crankshaft

The CFMoto is 649.3cc and has a 180-degree crankshaft, which puts out a handy 62Nm at 7000rpm. All Australian delivered bikes are LAMS-legal and produce 41.5kW at the crank at 9500rpm, but they may bring in a full powered version if there is demand. I’m told that the LAMS restrictor is only a stop on the butterfly valve so I can’t see it being a huge drama to remove, when you get a full licence that is…

2017 CFMoto 650MT exhaust headers

The full power version adds an extra 4.5kw across the rev range so it’s not a massive difference anyway. The fuel is supplied by a Bosch ECU for its injection, which are matched to dual 36mm UAES throttle bodies, the older model had 38mm ITT items, which helps smooth out the power and provide more fuel economy, handy on a tour/adventure bike like this.

Being a ‘mature age’ solo rider I have one of these machines at the top of my list to replace my soon to written off 2014 BMW G650GS Sertao following an accident on Tuesday. I don’t do anything tougher than the odd gravel road these days, always ride solo and can no longer physically cope with a larger bike.

August 30, 2017

Bike Review

Hey William, you can’t go wrong with the CF Moto 650 range. There’s strong performance from their twin cylinder powerplant and it’s a very manageable machine. Especially coming from something taller like a GS. Hope you’re OK after your accident!

September 23, 2017

Brian Davis

I took delivery of the very first 650MT registered in Australia and it is a brilliant bike , after owning a previous 650NK which was in its own right a lot of fun to ride i wanted the MT for its storage and higher positioning, The MT itself is fantastic, stable and smooth in every circumstance, comfortable seating, easy to read dash and generous storage, for the cost of this bike it cant be faulted.
As your review mentions, more people need to test ride these bikes and they will see that they are a great ride and build quality is good , on a price aspect you cant go wrong.
Ive been a rider for 27 years and owned bikes from scooters to 1000cc sports bikes , i think every bike in its own way has a place and most are fun to ride for what they are intended for, the CFmoto 650MT has been the most versatile bike ive ever had, storage by the ton, sporty feel and heaps of grunt off the line if you want to do that, smooth and comfortable for hours, I have no complaints.

March 6, 2018

Peter

How have past model CF Motos stood up to the test of time? Have there been any issues with parts supply, servicing costs, durability issues with mechanicals, body parts and electricals?

March 7, 2018

Bike Review

Hey Peter,
We’ve had a long term CF Moto 650 and never had an issue as far as durability or mechanicals, etc, in a year of riding. We did the basic servicing ourselves. One of our contributors owns a 650 NKS, we’ll find out how he’s found it long term and let you know.

May 19, 2018

Eduardo Pereira

I like the design of this bike a lot (although not so much the front lights cluster). I own a 2017 Kawasaki Versys 650 and was told the CF Moto engine is not a copy but indeed the very same engine of the Kawasaki, which is manufactured by…CF Moto. The rear sprocket is also incredibly similar to the Versys’ rear sprocket…to the point that I’d swear it is the same. The brake sustem is very different from the Kawasaki’s, though. As to the chassis… I seem to find some similarities. A very interesting bike, indeed, with a bargain price.

May 19, 2018

Bike Review

Hey Eduardo, rumour has it that Kawasaki sold the tooling for the first gen ER6N to CFMoto, which CFMoto have since continued developing for their own uses. We’ve always found the CFMoto’s we’ve tested very reliable, but I’m not sure you could say they use the ‘very same engine’, at least not in fairness to Kawasaki. It’s a bit more complex than that even if the rumours are true. But when we first saw the CFMoto 650 a few years ago we certainly thought the resemblance to the Kawasaki version pretty striking. Which makes sense, as the Kawasaki has been hugely successful.

June 13, 2018

Michael

Hello from sunny Greece,

My question is how good these bikes are? I really like to see a test comparison with Benelli TRK 502. I think TRK is one of its main competitors, isn’t it?

Also I didn’ t find any mention about fuel consumption.

June 13, 2018

Bike Review

Hey Michael,
We’ve always been very impressed with the CFMoto 650s, they’ve proven reliable and good value for money. There’s a bit of a trade-off with finish quality compared to a Japanese bike for instance, but that’s why they are priced so aggressively. The TRK502 is definitely competition with this model, we’ll see if Tony remembers fuel consumption and can give us a bit of a comparison of the two models, as he tested both.

October 1, 2018

Peter

How does the CF Moto 650MT with the panniers go in windy conditions? I have ridden a Yamaha TDM 900 with about the same size panniers as this bike and it was a terrifying experience on a windy day or if you over took a truck you almost involuntarily changed lanes.

November 13, 2018

Nick S.

Any chance we’ll see these states-side? CSC is testing Zongshen’s new RX4, a long-anticipated 450cc “big brother” to their popular 250cc RX3 ADV machine, which will do much better on the many and oft-unavoidable US freeways, especially here in Texas! Seeing how “Chonda” bike quality is now coming to near-par with the Japanese competition, I’m excited to see some other brands hit our shores, and CF Moto appears to be one of the most obvious to get there.

Btw, I’ve also noticed Fantic Motor’s new steeds sharing the RX4’s NC450 mill. That Flat Track machine really looks like a hoot! Of course, they’re Italy-based, so the value appeal isn’t quite the same, but it says a lot when you start seeing non-Chinese brands overtly using Chinese engines on new models.

Thanks!

November 13, 2018

Bike Review

Great question Nick, it looks like they’ve got a range of ATV machines available in the US, and you would think adding motorcycles would make sense as well. Here in Australia they do well as their motorcycles fit the Learner requirements, which all riders have to spend a few years on, making them a great value choice for that segment of the market. The Chinese made motorcycles have certainly really upped their game though, and it does speak well of them that their engines are being more widely adopted.

December 6, 2018

Rob

What was the fuel consumption like?

December 7, 2018

Bike Review

Hey Rob,
We more recently tested the 2018 model and were getting about 25km/L with a mix of around town, highway and country back roads.
You can find the more recent test here – Review: 2018 CFMoto 650 MT (LAMS)

“Hello Friends, I am Daniel from Argentina and your comments are very useful to me to decide the purchase of the MT 650, here in Argentina there are few units in the street and that is why it is a little scary to buy this motorcycle”

Hi Daniel, great to hear you got the MT 650, such a fantastic bike. Should be perfect for Argentina, particularly if you can get out on some back roads and do some touring, also good in the city. They are a great all-rounder. p.s – Leandro Mercado is going well!